International Court of Justice judge Hilary Charlesworth said that Judicial independence is critical for the operation of legal institutions, particularly in volatile political contexts. Hilary Charlesworth, an Australian international lawyer who has been a Judge of the ICJ since 5 November 2021, was delivering the second annual lecture on 'The International Court of Justice: A legal forum in a political environment' in the Supreme Court premises on February 10, 2024.
Referring to the role of the ICJ in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case, she said though the international court's judgement did not resolve the tension between India and Pakistan, it "at least provided a legal resolution to an acute dispute dividing them."
On April 10, 2017, Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian citizen was sentenced to death by a Field General Court Martial in Pakistan. The ICJ stayed his execution pending final adjudication of the case.
The ICJ had held that Pakistan will have to review the entire process of trial and conviction of Kulbhushan Jadhav and provide consular access to India.
She said judicial independence in the international context was aimed at eliminating any non-legal considerations that might affect a judge's reasoning.
"Judicial independence is critical to the operation of legal institutions, particularly in volatile political contexts," she said.
Justice Charlesworth in India's Apex Court Premises
Charlesworth also said that the international judiciary can draw inspiration from the distinguished history of independence of India's apex court.
"Our two courts, the Supreme Court of India and the ICJ, while very different, I noticed that we are of a very similar age, you are going into your 75th year, we're going into our 78th year," she said.
But both faced the task of "navigating highly charged political environments," Judge Charlesworth said.
She further adds that, the international judiciary can draw inspiration from the Supreme Court of India's distinguished history of independence, innovation.
Quoting Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud's recent talk at the ICJ's ceremonial sitting, the judge said, "Introspection is the art of bringing the seemingly unattainable within the line of vision."
She congratulated the SC on its foundation day and wished it a "rich and rewarding future."